


Innovades and Interventions

by mizutsunecafe



Category: Gundam 00
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Other, it's all a dnd campaign
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-09
Updated: 2018-04-24
Packaged: 2018-10-30 00:59:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10865751
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mizutsunecafe/pseuds/mizutsunecafe
Summary: It's an average day for Celestial Being when Allelujah brings up an interesting suggestion- a DnD campaign in which they save the world by becoming its worst enemy.Spoiler-heavy.





	1. In which it begins

**Author's Note:**

> this began because everyone deserves to be happy and it's been three days and i'm still suffering

"What are you building today?"

Setsuna slowly looked up. Hadn't he told Neil not to bug him when he was building? He was in the zone, dammit! But... No, it wasn't Neil. It was the other Lockon, Lyle. No wonder he'd opted to bother him. 

"I'm calling her Exia," Setsuna replied. He began to list off some of the features of his Gunpla- particularly the GN drive he'd hand-sculpted for her- but Lyle was already focused elsewhere. 

"And what's that, Tieria?"

"Nothing important," he replied, seeming somewhat embarrassed. 

"It's the Gundam Virtue. In times of crisis it can transform into the Gundam Nadleeh, and it possesses the Trial System which stops any other mobile suit linked to a computer system.” Setsuna looked at Tieria with an eyebrow raised as he spoke- really, this was the most he’d talked all week, even in his classes.

"Her name is Veda," Tieria protested. 

"Sounds like you two have a lot going on here." Lyle murmured, picking up one of the Virtue parts and looking at it curiously. 

"... I knew I should've joined the computer club," Tieria grumbled as he stood up to snatch it back.

“Nothing’s stopping you from joining that too,” Setsuna replied simply, sanding down one of the pieces. He blew the dust away, revealing the part ready to snap-on.

Tieria didn’t reply, merely sitting back down and continuing to work on his model. 

“It conflicts with his schedule, Setsuna,” Allelujah said, placing a tray of snacks onto the table. The brunette grumbled as he took one of the cans of Coke hadn’t they heard his request for Pepsi? He’d thought he’d been nice enough about it.

“Got Kyrios to work on?” Setsuna asked quietly, and in answer Allelujah pulled a box out from under the table, revealing the orange-and-white gunpla. He began to work on it, carefully placing the pieces out in front of him and assembling them with precision. 

The trio worked in silence until Lyle frustratedly sat down at the table with a sigh, staring at the models being built.

There was more silence, so he sighed again.

“What do you want?” Tieria asked, raising an eyebrow. 

“It’s boring in here,” Lyle protested, only for Allelujah to scoot over, a small smile on his face. 

“Well, if you want to try building a model with me, you can. Your brother was working on a custom piece too.”

“Thanks for the offer, but that’s not really my style.”

“Then don’t complain about being bored.” Setsuna muttered, and both he and Tieria looked at him with annoyance.

With a sigh, Lyle stood up, heading out the door and lingering outside, not closing the door behind him.

“Hey, close that! You’re gonna let the air conditioning out.” Another voice- this time from Leesa Kujo- or Sumeragi, as she asked the members of Celestial Being to call her (if you want to end war, you’ve gotta have cool nicknames, after all). A teacher at the local college, she had founded the club with the help of the three sitting at the table plus Lyle’s twin brother Neil. 

Officially, their goal was to protest war, but in reality they just built Gundam kits and wore t-shirts with such elaborate slogans as “war is dumb” and “hugs not drugs”.

With a groan, Lyle closed the door, the scent of a cigarette wafting through before it slammed shut.

“Didn’t you have an appointment today, Allelujah?” Sumeragi asked, turning off the show she was watching and walking over to the table to watch the trio build. 

“Yeah. I already went at lunch time,” he replied as he munched on some chips and mournfully drank his soda. “My counselor had a suggestion for us, actually…”

“Really?” Sumeragi took notice of his indignant expression as he drank his Coke, but didn’t say anything in regards to that. “Are they going to tell me this counts as on-campus and tell me I can’t drink here?”

“Uh, no, Miss Sumeragi. But she did suggest that we find out a way to work through our issues. Like Setsuna’s… adoption, and what happened to Lyle and Neil’s family, and Tieria’s… family life.”

He was trying to mince words, something that the other two at the table clearly didn’t appreciate. The mood in the room went from one of gentle amusement to one of disquiet. 

“You’re allowed to say what happened,” Setsuna said quietly, the only other sound the soft snap of plastic parts. “You’re allowed to say what I did.”

“Er, no, I was just going to say, we could… do something fun to work through it. We could do something that connects all of our interests…”

“What did you have in mind, Allelujah?” Sumeragi asked, walking around the table to place a hand on Setsuna’s shoulder, a gesture he seemed surprised by but seemed to be cheered by, too.

“… Well, I suggested we give a tabletop game a try. And she seemed to like the idea.”

“Really? Like Dungeons and Dragons?” Tieria didn’t seem amused.

“Of course the nerd knows what he means.” Sumeragi walked over to ruffle Tieria’s hair, a gesture he didn’t appreciate much at all. The door opened again as Lyle and Neil both walked in, Neil eagerly hurrying to the building table to work on his own kit. 

“I came up with a basic scenario for us. Celestal Being, an organization founded to end war and promote the glorious ideals of Aeolia Schenberg—”

“Like the president of the college?”

“Let him finish, Neil.” Sumeragi walked past them to the kitchen, slowing her footfalls to show she was still listening. 

“—Anyway, the four Gundam Meisters,” he said, gesturing to the four of them at the table, “begin a series of armed interventions to stop war.”

“Armed interventions?” Setsuna raised an eyebrow. “We just barrel into war zones?”

“That’s the idea, yes. But no one has the technology we have. We have the GN drives.”

Setsuna went starry-eyed. “We have Gundams.”

“And the rest of the world doesn’t. So we have the power to stop war.”

“I love it!” Sumeragi grinned. She returned from the kitchen, drinking from a glass of orange juice. Even though she’d complained about it, she really was trying to kick the habit of drinking so much. In her free hand was a glass of milk- the glass bearing a scribble of Setsuna’s name.

“I don’t. It sounds lame,” Lyle groaned, standing up and walking over to the couch to watch television instead. 

“Don’t listen to him,” Neil said, a smile on his face. “I love it. I can see it now- Lockon Stratos, Gundam Meister!”

As if to say “don’t forget about me!” his cat, Haro, appeared, leaping up into his lap with a soft meow. Neil laughed, patting the tabby on the head. Allelujah reached over to scratch the feline under the chin as well. 

“I won’t forget about you, Haro. Setsuna, didn’t you say there were robots called Haro?”

“Yes. That’s why I suggested that name.” He nodded, taking the glass of milk from Sumeragi. 

“What if I have a little robot partner named Haro?” The cat jumped up onto the table, knocking over Virtue, but Tieria still patted the cat on the head just the same. 

“If you want to, you can.” Allelujah smiled, his excitement clearly growing. “So let’s come up with our backstories…”

“… I have an idea.”

Surprising everyone, Tieria had spoken up. He looked down at his hands, fingers wrapped around the hem of his pink cardigan. 

“Well, let’s hear it.”

“It might mess with your story, though. Is that okay?”

“I encourage it!” It wasn’t like Tieria to be so… considerate. Maybe next time he’ll remember I like Pepsi.

“… Perhaps I could be… not human.”

“What do you mean?”

“A race of humans able to communicate with a computer system, named Veda,” he explained, picking up Virtue and holding it out like an example. “… Oh. They could be called Innovators.”

“How about ‘Innovades’?” Allelujah suggested. “It sounds more other-worldly.”

“I like it.”

“And your brother, Regene- would he be one too?”

“Yeah. Genetically the same, but I would be a combat-type.”

“You’ve thought a lot about this…”


	2. The First Intervention

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my bro for writing up the part with Tieria and Allelujah's interventions. I appreciate it!! (so if you really like that part, thank him, not me!)
> 
> Hope y'all are ready for a FEELS TRIP because it's about to go down

“Alright, everyone got your character sheets ready?” Sumeragi looked over the group, their finished Gunpla standing proudly before each of the four boys before her. While Allelujah looked politely ahead (although there was a real possibility he was just ignoring his can of Coke in front of him), Tieria fidgeted nervously with his page, and Setsuna and Lockon were engaged in a mock battle with their models. Currently it seemed Lockon was more humoring Setsuna than actually trying to win, complete with sound effects and quiet, mock groans whenever he was “hit”.

“Of course.” Tieria looked up, adjusting his glasses, confidence renewed with his preparedness. He set his sheet down on the table, passing it to Sumeragi, who looked over it. 

“And we’re keeping this bit confidential?” She raised an eyebrow, pointing to one line in particular. He nodded in response as Allelujah reluctantly took a sip of his soda.

“Right.”

“Okay.” Sumeragi took a post-it note and placed it over the offending line, which Tieria accepted back and glanced over. “Feldt, would you mind making sure the casserole doesn’t burn? And Christina, keep an eye on her. I don’t want her getting burned again.”

The entire crew shuddered when they remembered the last time poor Feldt had tried cooking- she’d forgotten to get oven mitts and had yanked the tray of cookies out with her bare hands, but not before announcing to everyone that “this is the worst part of cooking”.

“This is going to be a trial run, everyone, so we’re going to be doing this outside of the story unless we all vote to keep it, okay?”

There were general murmurs of assent from around the table, and only minor grumbles of disappointment from Lockon and Setsuna who had to stop their game. 

Sumeragi set the scene as Setsuna fiddled with Exia. The year was 2307, and despite the world having achieved its goal of clean energy, mankind had yet to stop its warring ways. Aeolia Schenberg, the founder of Celestial Being- there was a loud whoop from Lyle, who was currently sprawled out on the couch watching an action movie- made an announcement more than two hundred years after his death- unless mankind stops war and stops promoting war immediately, his four Gundam Meisters will begin armed interventions worldwide in an effort to stop war- essentially, giving the world a common enemy to unite and fight against. 

The four young men looked between one another and Sumeragi with excitement- even Tieria had a smile on his face, and Allelujah’s soda-related woes seemed a thing of the past. 

“Now, there’s a celebration going on. Setsuna, you’re there alone. What do you do?”

“I investigate.”

“Alright… You approach the celebration in your Gundam Exia. The celebration is the unveiling of the Human Reform League’s- present day Russia and other affiliated nations- orbital tower, a tower that contains an elevator that goes into space.” She pauses, and Tieria leans forward a bit, clearly intrigued. “Visiting the celebration is the Advance European Union, showing off their newest mobile suit. You see that the area is filled with mobile suits, in fact, one of them showing off a bit. What do you do now?”

“Would you consider the show-off to be promoting war?”

“That is Celestial Being’s judgement, yes. That’s the reason you’re there, with Exia.”

“Then I intervene. I approach to attack the mobile suit.”

“You approach the mobile suit. You hear a familiar voice… Why, it’s none other than Patrick Colasour!”

Laughter resounded through the room- Patrick was a young man at their college, infamous for hitting on every woman in sight. He’d even hit on Tieria and Regene more than once, much to their chagrin.

Setsuna, clearly amused despite his expression remaining stoic, leaned forward and picked up the D20 resting between Sumeragi and the players. 

“I roll to attack… Non-lethally.”

At the addition of “non-lethally”, everyone seemed amused once more- Setsuna had added it a bit hastily, after all.

“Really? He is promoting war.”

“We can give them a warning, right?” Allelujah joined in, taking a sip of his soda and grimacing a bit at the taste. 

“Alright. You approach to attack Patrick’s mobile suit. As you near the crowd, they notice something strange- the particles from your GN drive are blocking cell phone and other comm devices from working properly. Roll to attack.”

Setsuna shook the dice in his hand before dropping it on the table, revealing a twenty.

“Nice,” Allelujah whispered. Lockon whistled in amazement and Tieria leaned back with a shocked expression. Sumeragi grinned, laughing for a moment and taking a sip of orange juice.

“You completely humiliate the poor sap. You knock him on his butt and everything.”

The group laughed- even Setsuna cracked a smile. 

“But this catches the attention of the AEU, of course. They aren’t happy you just beat up Patrick.”

“Well, why not?” Tieria grumbled, and the group laughed again. 

The door creaked open, revealing two more familiar faces- Lichty and Lasse. Lasse held a few bags of groceries while Lichty picked up the rest. Sumeragi waved to them but otherwise didn’t say anything, the look in her eyes saying I’m DM-ing here.

The two boys walked past the table, Lichty unceremoniously dropping the groceries on the counter. Lasse chastised him for dropping what could have been eggs or a jar, only for Lichty to complain about the bags’ weight. Feldt quietly shushed the boys as Christina shoved a set of oven mitts onto her hands. 

“Don’t start yelling this time, okay?”

Feldt nodded, crouching and removing the casserole, smiling when she saw the golden-brown surface. 

“Smells great!” Lockon called, and Feldt blushed a bit to herself. 

“Thank you.”

“Well, let’s wrap up this bit so we can eat. Setsuna, what do you do now?”

“I… It’s a bad idea to take on so many at once alone. I abscond.”

“Go ahead and roll.”

Setsuna picked the dice back up and shook it for a moment before dropping it onto the table. 

“Oof, a three. You start to get away, but more mobile suits appear to engage you.”

“… I call in backup.” Setsuna turned to look at Lockon, who grinned as Haro jumped up into his lap, meowing as if to say ready to launch!

“Alright, Lockon. Do you accept Setsuna’s distress call?”

“You bet. Lockon Stratos, targeted and firing!”

“You arrive on the scene, and see Setsuna surrounded by enemy fighters. How do you choose to attack?”

“With my… Uh… What’d you call it again, Setsuna?”

“Beam rifle.” Setsuna took a sip of milk. 

“Right, with my bean rifle. That… doesn’t sound particularly deadly, Setsuna.”

“No, beam. With an m.” He seemed a little annoyed. 

“Oh, okay, that sounds a lot better.” Lockon mimed aiming a large gun, Haro purring in excitement. “I attack with my beam rifle!”

“Roll to see how many you strike down.”

Lockon picked up the dice with confidence, only to roll a ten out of twenty.

“Ten more mobile suits surround you!”

“I take them down with my beam saber,” Setsuna countered, rolling the dice again before Sumeragi could instruct him. 

“Alright. You take down the ones left, and you both manage to escape.”

Tieria and Allelujah applauded, and they opted to break for dinner, getting a plate of casserole and a fresh drink and settled into the crowded den. 

“Wanna watch a movie?” Lyle asked, sitting up to give his twin and Tieria some space on the couch. 

“No, we’ve gotta get back to our game,” Sumeragi replied simply. “But thanks for the offer, Lyle.”

“You guys are really into that,” he shot back, and everyone wound up glaring at him. He held his hands up defensively, and for a moment it was quiet.

“… Have any of you guys seen Allelujah?”

As if on cue, he returned from the kitchen, frowning into his soda. 

“Are you okay?” Christina asked, standing up from her seat before sitting back down and scooting over, making just enough room for him. 

“Yeah. Sorry to worry you.”

Christina frowned- something had to be wrong, but she didn’t want to pry, either.

It was quiet as the group ate, occasionally someone commenting on the taste or someone else bringing up a topic- the movie Lyle was watching was a popular one. It seemed to have changed from an action film to a sports movie halfway through.

Or at least it seemed that way until a gun went off.

Setsuna flinched, and immediately Feldt looked at him in concern.

“Are you okay, Setsuna?”

“… Just give me a moment.”

The freshman stood up, excusing himself from the room and walking to the bathroom. He turned on the sink, feeling hot tears welling up in his eyes as his body began to shake. 

There’s not a God, there’s not a God.

The memories came back. Flooding back, like a rush of water. He gripped the edge of the sink. 

Soran, what are you doing?

Soran, no—

This is a holy war in the name of God.

The words jumbled around in his mind, his body shaking as he curled up, hands quivering on the edge of the sink. 

He remembered how scared he was. How powerless he felt. The only thing between him- a mere child- and death, a machine gun low on bullets. Innocent blood on his hands, too much suffering for a mere child to have lived through at the tender age of eight.

Buzz, buzz.

Setsuna jumped, letting out a tiny yelp and almost banging his head on the sink. He shuffled, carefully removing the offending object from his pocket. 

A cell phone.

[MSG:] 

Got you a new kit, kid. I’ll have it sent to that CB club. ok?

Love dad

Setsuna finally relaxed, a tiny smile forming on his lips as tears formed anew in his eyes. He wiped his eyes, standing up and shoving his phone back into his pocket.

There was a knock on the door, and he opened it slowly, revealing Sumeragi on the other side.

“… Miss Sumeragi?”

“You okay, Setsuna? You’ve been crying, haven’t you?”

He shook his head, despite the sniffle that was clearly audible. He could see from down the hall that everyone was watching, and he heard Lyle call “sorry, Setsuna”, from the couch. 

“I have an idea,” Setsuna said, “But I want to run it past you first. I want to make sure it isn’t too… heavy.”

“What is it?” She placed her hands on his shoulders, and he leaned into the touch, feeling more relaxed by the moment. 

“Can I… can I sit down?”

“Yes. Do you want to sit in one of the rooms, or would you rather sit with everyone else?”

“With everyone is fine…”

After settling back in, nestled between Feldt and Christina, he immediately felt safer, looking around the room.

The television was off.

“I want to change my character,” he explained, looking straight ahead at Sumeragi. “I want him to be… more like myself.”

“I don’t know much about you, Setsuna, but I did have to admit I didn’t expect an idyllic family life from you.” Sumeragi replied, her tone serious as could be despite the lighthearted words.

“… Apologies,” he said, having to gather his words. How did one admit to a group of friends that you had serious trauma that required likely more than a game of Dungeons and Dragons- or, Innovades and Interventions, as they were calling it- could help. That you’d committed a serious crime that, if your adopted father didn’t have such connections would have you in prison for life, or even killed for your sins?

But slowly the words came tumbling out, and after a few moments of silence Lyle spoke up.

“… That PTSD is a bitch, isn’t it?”

“You said it.”

Lyle laughed- perhaps the seriousness in Setsuna’s response contrasted with the colloquial expression.

“I have no objections,” Sumeragi said after a moment, walking over and holding her arms out. “I… even have some ideas, if all involved parties could give their consent. But first, hugs.”

Setsuna nodded, standing up and letting Sumeragi hug him. At first it felt odd to have his history teacher wrapping her arms around him, but he remembered that off-campus they were friends- nothing more, but nothing less, either.

She let him go after a moment, and he sat back down.

“That was really brave, Setsuna,” Feldt said softly.

“Do you feel up to finishing our session?” Sumeragi asked, and he nodded, standing back up despite his legs still feeling a bit shaky. 

“Yeah. We have some armed interventions to complete, don’t we?”

At that, Lockon cheered, Allelujah grinned, and Tieria merely stood up.

 

Moments later, they’d returned to their game.

“Okay, Allelujah terrorists are attacking the HRL Geostationary station. What do you do?”

“Um… Uh… Intercept with the Kyrios!” he said as he grabbed the dice. He shook his hand and tossed them, only for it to roll off the table. He rolled a 15.

“You destroy the terrorists… but plot twist! There’s more that managed to get past you.”  
Everyone groaned. Tieria had a smirk on his face. Sumeragi took note. Usually he was so quiet, but it was nice to see him take interest in this for a change. Let’s see what you have up your sleeve…

“Alright, Tieria’s turn,” Sumeragi said. “As said before, seems these terrorists have no idea what the meaning of give up is. While their courage is admirable… or utterly stupid, in your words…”

Everyone laughed. Tieria shrugged. She was right. Who was he to argue?

“Allelujah won’t be able to make it in time. What do you do?”

“I’m going to blast them with my GN Bazooka.” 

Everyone, even Setsuna looked at him with shock. Sumeragi herself chuckled.

“Alright, let’s see what Mr. Computer Guy can do.”

Tieria cracked his knuckles, yawned and grabbed the dice. He tossed his dice… and everyone looked intently. He crossed his arms, glaring at the dice as if to intimidate them. The dice bounced around on the table… and slowly they came to a stop. It was a perfect 20. Tieria seemed almost smug and let out a huff, as if to say he expected that.

Sumeragi was shocked.

“… Y-you blow away all the terrorists in one shot.”

Allelujah scoffed. “Don’t you think that was a little excessive?”

The session more or less became exposition and narrative after that. It seemed everyone was having fun at least, however, it was getting late. At least they’ll have tomorrow to do this all again.

As Setsuna packed away his gunpla to return to campus, Sumeragi once more went to his side. “Are you feeling alright? I’ll walk you back to your dorm.” As a freshman- and a minor, at that- Setsuna was required to live on-campus until he either came of age or became a sophomore and was presumably more familiar with the campus.

“Thanks, Miss Sumeragi.”

The walk back was largely silent, but as he walked back to his room and Sumeragi waved from the main entrance, he found a strange sight- or rather, a strange voice. He slowly opened the door to reveal his roommate, Saji Crossroad, being… accosted? by a familiar girl. He’d seen the girl around a time or two, and it seemed the two had bonded quickly. But currently he girl had her hands clasped around his, and when he glanced over he saw her laptop screen was open to a ring-making website. 

The current price tag was well over a thousand dollars.

“Saji, I’m telling you, it’s PERFECT!”

“L-Louise…”

Louise turned to Setsuna, eyes starry as she walked over to him. “Don’t you agree? Your name was Setsuna, right? Setsuna F. Seiei!”

“… Yes.”

“Well, don’t you think those rings are perfect for me and Saji’s wedding?!”

“… I think you’re both too young and foolish.” Setsuna’s reply was curt as he placed Exia on his nightstand.

“Thanks, Setsuna. Wait, foolish?!” Saji seemed to take offense, even frowning firmly.

“… I’m going to bed, Saji.”

With that, Setsuna took his pajamas and went to the bathroom, changing into the fleecy soft fabric and snuggling under the covers- the last thing he saw was his Gundam.

That was one of the few things that brought him joy when he remembered his childhood- he grew up watching Gundam. The tale of Amuro, fighting against the forces of Zeon to reclaim earth. The idea of a boy forced into war resonated with him for obvious reasons, and soon enough he found himself associating good things with his favorite show. 

Dad’s a Gundam. Maybe one day I’ll be a Gundam, too.


	3. Advantage to friendship rolls

"Looks like you all have been busy." Sumeragi quirked a brow as she gazed upon the papers placed before her on the table. She picked them up, eyeing them carefully. 

"We thought it was only fair..." Allelujah's voice was soft as he began to explain, his eyes drifting down to the soda in his hand. Store brand cola. Not bad, but not his favorite. "After Setsuna told us what happened to him, we all agreed it would be better to be more candid about our own lives."

"But just saying 'oh look it's us!' was boring, so we shook things up a bit." Neil smiled, placing a hand on Setsuna's shoulder. "You read what we all sent you, right?"

He was quiet for a moment, but nodded. "... You shouldn't have gone to all that trouble."

"We figured it was better than hiding everything from one another." Tieria piped up this time. Sumeragi leafed through the character sheets, pausing after a moment-

"Lyle? You wrote out a sheet too?"

But there was no immediate reply- Lyle was out on the porch, smoking. Neil sighed, answering in his place. "He thought with... Well, given my situation, that it might be a good idea for him to be ready to jump in if need be."

The room fell silent in understanding. Neil had, despite his pacifistic ways, been scouted by the army as a sniper. Much like in the game, his aim was unparalleled. He'd heard word that they might soon call him to action, so he knew he had to be ready when they called. 

He hated to think of how his actions might impact the world negatively, and he suddenly became acutely aware of how Setsuna might feel about all of this. What would happen if he found himself staring down the scope at a face a decade his junior? For the sake of the world, could he still pull the trigger?

He shook his head slightly to clear the thought from his mind. He couldn't bear to think on it a moment longer.

 

"It wouldn't be fair to make you all wait, right?" Neil tried to laugh it off, hoping the concerned gazes would move on. But they didn't. Setsuna stood from his chair, reached out, and held out his hand as if to ask for him to shake it. 

"... Promise me you'll do the right thing. If you have to harm someone to protect this world... to make it less twisted... you'll do it."

His brown eyes, normally closed-off yet alive, were cold, hardened, focused on this purpose, this singular question. He hesitated for a moment before he nodded, shaking Setsuna's hand firmly. 

"Yeah. I promise you."

Suddenly warmth filled Setsuna's eyes. Even though he didn't smile, his brown eyes seemed glad for his response. As Neil loosened his grip Setsuna pulled back and gave him a soft punch on the shoulder, making him laugh. 

"Man, with a punch like that, it wouldn't surprise me if you really were a Gundam."

Setsuna's face grew serious, somehow even moreso than before. 

"... Don't tell me you're that much of a Gundam fanatic you got some weird cybernetic from Professor Vashti..."

"Thank you."

"Setsuna, that wasn't really a compliment."

Tieria smiled at the two's antics, a gesture that didn't go unnoticed by Sumeragi and Allelujah. They couldn't help but to smile in turn. 

The door creaked open as Lyle strode back in, tobacco on his breath as he walked past the table and into the living area, flopping onto the couch and turning on the television. Haro roused from his sleep, offering a soft "murr" as he was disturbed. "Hey, bud." Lyle scratched him on the back, and soon enough the kitty was back in dreamland.

 

"So I took a look over everyone's sheets," Sumeragi announced, loud enough to get Lyle's attention. She straightened the papers as he sighed and muted the television- currently playing some family film about a museum security officer. "... Based on what you guys said, I imagine this is all based on some real stuff you've all been through. I want you guys to know that if you need a hug or someone to talk to, I'm here for you. Plus, as Allelujah knows," he raised his can of cola in acknowledgement, "we've got a great on-campus counseling service. And Setsuna, don't worry, you won't get in trouble." She ruffled his hair. "They'd rather you come in if you need to talk than to just let it sit. But we're doing this too so you all can cope with what you've been through. Right?"

Everyone nodded, though Lyle threw in a "yeah" when he realized he was out of Sumeragi's line of sight. 

"So, shall we start today's session?" Sumeragi smiled, eagerly holding up the plastic bag full of dice. There was a clack almost immediately after- the sound of Setsuna firmly planting Exia on the table, excitement clear in his eyes. Neil was about to get in some good-natured teasing when he saw the corners of his mouth twitch upward, just slightly. 

It seemed that Sumeragi was prepared for a more traditional style of the game now. She set the scene- the Gundam Meisters were challenging both sides of a centuries-long conflict between two warring factions in present-day Sri Lanka, with the Human Reform League (Sumeragi mentioned their base here was headed by one Sergei Smirnov, the history department head, and Allelujah gulped nervously) in an effort to end the fighting there.

 

"Roll for initiative!"

Immediately the order was set, and it seemed that their luck had yet to run out. The meisters swept through their opponents, and despite Sumeragi's statements that the opposing mobile suits weren't all that amazing Setsuna could still be seen sketching down how he saw them. Taozis, Anfs, and other mobile suits (even a Zaku) appeared in the margins of his paper. 

As the others swept through the enemy fighters, with each fighter taking their own objectives, Setsuna found himself face to face with Sergei himself. Allelujah seemed relieved- the sudden release of tension was felt by everyone- but Setsuna didn't show much acknowledgement other than a quick glance his way. 

"You're strong and your movements are swift- you and Exia are fighting at your best. But Sergei has lots of experience, too. He currently has your camera blocked and is determined to break Exia to pieces to capture it." Sumeragi's tone was serious yet excited. While she was willing to cut them some slack so early on sometimes things didn't go so well- like Setsuna's last few rolls. While he'd done fine till then, he had rolled a few attacks poorly, doing little damage, and leaving him wide open for retaliation. 

"What are you going to do?"

Setsuna looked down at his character sheet, pointing to one line in particular. 

"You can't do the spin attack again until you take a long rest. You sure?"

"Absolutely. I won't allow him to harm her."

 

"Then roll!"

There was a soft clatter. "... Sixteen."

"It hits."

Then another few clatters as he rolled for damage- enough to free himself from Sergei's grasp and incapacitate him- and for the meisters to collect themselves and flee. 

The four boys relaxed, all congratulating one another on their amazing feats. They let their minds ignore that they were still, technically, in combat. 

At least until Sumeragi rolled a dice and jotted something down, placing a familiar yearbook photo on the table. 

"Suddenly, a Flag appears, piloted by Graham Aker!"

Honestly no one was really sure what Aker's job at the college really was. Only that he was there all the time and hung around Billy Katagiri (the head of logistics) and was somehow more obsessed with Gundam than Setsuna. As a result there was a collective laugh around the table as he made his entrance.

 

"He approaches you and attacks! Everyone, roll for evasion."

Tieria, Allelujah, and Neil all passed easily- but Setsuna wasn't quite so lucky. He didn't dodge perfectly but still managed to block the attack. 

"He loudly announces who he is, and states that he's fallen in love with the Gundams!"

The older three laughed, but Setsuna was deadly serious as he replied "he can never take Exia from me." In fact the deathly calm way he spoke chilled the others from their mirth. 

He counter-attacked, telling the others to leave the field. After bickering both in and out of character for a moment, they complied, leaving Setsuna on the field with a lovesick NPC. 

But a few rolls later and he'd fled, easily disarmed by Setsuna's quick thinking- and that wrapped the session up with a nifty cliffhanger. 

By then the sun had set, and dinner was nearing. As if on cue Lasse walked in with pizzas in hand, clearly wincing from the piping-hot steam heating the cardboard against his skin. And once more the group settled into the den, drinking their drinks and eating their pizza. 

Allelujah, however, was over the moon about the whole thing. Apparently the pizza place had some kind of sale, and they had their drink tie-in all set up. 

He had Pepsi for the first time in weeks!


End file.
